Sev puri is a traditional street food from Mumbai that is spicy, sweet and full of flavor. The base of the snack is a small, deep-fried whole wheat disc called a poori or papdi, on top of which is piled sweet and spicy chutney made of various herbs and chili, as well as chopped veggies and crisped, fried vermicelli flakes called sev. The various components of sev puri require some preparation, but it is a great snack to eat if you’re craving something crunchy and crammed full of flavor.

Ingredients

36 crisp puris (also called papdis)

¾ cup (177.4 ml) sev

2 medium all-purpose potatoes

1 medium-sized onion

1 tomato

1 teaspoon (4.93 ml) red chili powder (lal mirch powder)

1 teaspoon(4.93 ml) cumin powder (jeera powder)

1 teaspoon (4.93 ml) chaat masala

1 teaspoon (4.93 ml) salt

1 teaspoon (4.93 ml) lime juice

dollop of plain yogurt (optional)

Spicy Green Coriander Chutney Ingredients

2 cups coriander leaves

2 green chilies

½ inch (1.27 cm) ginger root

½ teaspoon (2.4 ml) lime juice

½ teaspoon (2.4 ml) cumin powder (jeera powder)

½ teaspoon (2.4 ml) chaat masala

½ teaspoon (2.4 ml) salt

Sweet Tamarind Date Chutney Ingredients

½ cup (118.2 ml) seedless tamarind

½ cup (118.2 ml) dates

½ cup (118.2 ml) powdered jaggery

2 cups (473.1 ml) water

½ teaspoon (2.4 ml) roasted cumin powder

½ teaspoon (2.4 ml) coriander powder

½ teaspoon (2.4 ml) dry ginger powder

½ teaspoon (2.4 ml) red chili powder

pinch of salt

Red Chili Chutney Ingredients

15 dry Kashmiri red chilies

8 cloves of garlic

pinch of salt

Steps

Part 1

Making the Chutneys

1

Chop the green coriander chutney ingredients. Rinse the coriander leaves, green chilies, and lime, then chop the coriander leaves and dice the green chilies and ginger. Cut the lime in half, then squeeze each half into a small bowl.[1]

2

Grind the green coriander chutney ingredients together. Place two cups of chopped coriander leaves, the diced green chilies, ½ teaspoon (2.4 ml) of cumin powder, ½ teaspoon (2.4 ml) of chaat masala, the diced ginger, 1 teaspoon (4.8 ml) of lemon juice, and a pinch of salt into a food processor. Grind until the ingredients form a smooth paste.[2]

Place the green coriander chutney aside in a small bowl. If you are preparing the chutney in advance, put it in a sealed container and store it in the fridge.

Some people prefer to prepare their chutneys a day in advance to give the flavors time to blend and mature.

Wash out the food processor between each use so that the flavors of one chutney don’t carry over into the next one you are preparing.

Reserve the lime juice for later use.

3

Cook the tamarind and dates on low heat. To begin making the sweet tamarind date chutney, place 2 cups (473.1 ml) of water, ½ cup (118.2 ml) of seedless tamarind and ½ cup (118.2 ml) of seedless dates in a pan over low heat. Cook until the fruit softens, about 8-9 minutes.[3]

4

Add the powdered jaggery and spices to the pan. After the dates and tamarind have softened, add the ½ cup (118.2 ml) of powdered jaggery. When the mixture has thickened, about two minutes, add the red chili powder, coriander powder, dried ginger powder and the roasted cumin powder.[4]

Let the mixture simmer for one to two minutes.

5

Grind the mixture to a chutney. Once the mixture has simmered for a few minutes, add a pinch of salt and stir. Then take the mixture off the heat and allow it to cool down. Once it has cooled to around room temperature, place the mixture in a chutney grinder or food processor. Grind until the chutney is smooth.

You may have to add water to the mixture for it to grind properly. If you added water, pour the chutney into a fine mesh strainer after blending so that all the watery liquid drains out.

When you are done making the sweet tamarind date chutney, put it in a bowl and set it aside, or put it in a sealed container in the refrigerator if you’re making it in advance.

6

Soak the chilies and chop the garlic for the red chutney. Slice the red chilies in half, and remove the seeds if you wish to make the chutney less hot. Then place the chilies in a bowl of water and let them soak for 30 minutes. While they soak, peel and dice the garlic.[5]

Make sure not to touch the area around your eyes when you are handling the chili, and wash your hands after you transfer them to soak.

7

Grind the chilies and garlic in a food processor. Use a spoon to scoop up the dried chilies and put the chilies and the diced garlic in a food processor. Then add one teaspoon (2.4 ml) water. Grind the ingredients until they form a paste.

Scoop the red chutney out of the food processor and place it aside in a bowl, or put it in a sealed container and refrigerate it if you are preparing it in advance.

Part 2

Making the Vegetables

1

Place the potatoes in a pot of cold water. Scrub and wash the potatoes, then place them in a medium sized pot. Pour in enough cold water to cover the potatoes in an inch or so of water. Then add in a pinch of salt.[6]

Starting to cook the potatoes in cold water ensures that they cook evenly.

2

Place the potatoes over medium heat and bring to a boil. Place the pot of potatoes on the oven over medium heat. Heat until the potatoes start to boil. Once they start boiling, reduce the heat to low and let them simmer uncovered.[7]

3

Check the potatoes after about ten minutes. After around ten minutes of simmering, check the potatoes by piercing them with a fork. If the potatoes are tender, it means that they have finished cooking. If they are still hard, check them after another few minutes.[8]

4

Drain and chop the potatoes. After the potatoes have finished cooking, remove them from the heat. Pour them into a colander to drain out the water. Run them under cold water to help cool them. Then chop them into small, ½ inch (1.2 cm) pieces.[9]

Salt the potato pieces if you wish.

5

Chop the onions and tomatoes. Peel the onions and dice them into ½ inch (1.2 cm) pieces. Then wash the tomatoes and cut them into ½ inch (1.2 cm) pieces as well.[10]

Part 3

Combining the Ingredients

1

Poke holes in the center of the puris. Now that you have made each component of the sev puri, it’s time to put them together! First, arrange the puris on a plate or platter. Then carefully use your thumb to poke a hole in the center of each puri puff, so that you will be able to stuff ingredients into the hollow insides.[11]

Puris are very fragile, so be sure to use the no more force than is necessary when you poke the holes.

Some puris are puffier and more rounded, while others are flatter with less space inside. Even if you have flatter puris, still poke holes so that you can fit some ingredients inside them.

2

Stuff the puris with the potatoes, onions and tomatoes. Use a spoon to dole out a couple of cubes each of the chopped potatoes, onions and tomatoes into the center of each puri.[12]

3

Spoon in the chutneys. Add about a tablespoon of the chutneys to each puri. You can adjust the amount of chutney you add depending on your taste preference and your spice tolerance.[13]

If you want to make you sev puri milder, add only ½ teaspoon (1.23 ml) of the red chutney or leave it out entirely.

It's ok if the puri fillings are beginning to pile on top of, rather than inside, the puris.

You can also add dollop of plain yogurt if you wish.

4

Sprinkle in the chaat masala and spices. After you add in the chutneys, add a pinch each of the red chili powder, chaat masala, roasted cumin powder, and black salt.[14]

Adjust the amount of chili powder and masala depending on your spice tolerance.

5

Sprinkle the sev on top. Generously sprinkle each puri with the crispy sev. The chutneys should catch the sev so that it sticks to the puri. Make sure that each puri has a substantial heap of sev at the top.[15]

You can find sev at most Indian stores.

You can also add in a dash of lime juice and place chopped coriander leaves on top of the sev as garnish if you wish.

6

Serve immediately. Sev puri should be eaten immediately before it gets soggy. Once you assemble the sev puri, use your fingers to eat this zesty snack. Enjoy sev puri while sitting down or on the go![16]

Community Q&A

Make puris by making a whole wheat dough, then forming the dough into circular shapes and deep-frying the dough pieces until they are puffy and golden. You can also find pre-made puris at most Indian grocery stores and specialty stores.